Romance Books – LairOfBooks

Spoiler Free Review: Raiders Of The Lost Heart by Jo Segura

Title: Raiders Of The Lost Heart

Author: Jo Segura

Pub. Date: December 5th. 2023

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Tropes: academic rivals/close proximity

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley

Pages: 357

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☆☆ARC PROVIDED BY PUBLISHER IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW☆☆

Lara Croft meets Indiana Jones and they embark on a dig set in the Mexican jungle…but make it hot?!? 🤗 there was no passing this up, even more so when the female main character is a Mexican archeologist with a penchant for adventure. Dr. Soccorro “Corrie” Mejia has devoted her academic career to becoming world renowned expert on the ancient warrior of the Aztec Empire Chimalli. She’s invited to an all expenses paid dig to search for Chimali’s long lost remains, the warrior she believes is one of her ancestors. When she learns that the lead archeologist is none other than her academic rival Dr. Ford Matthews, Corrie is put in the position of having to rise above or miss out. Corrie is a woman of color working in a male dominated field, her work should garner her the respect she deserves. Instead Corrie is objectified by her peers which leads her to believe this is the reason why she was overlooked to lead this dig. The point of contention throughout this expedition is the fact that Dr. Ford a white cishet male with knowledge of Chimali (but not quite as much as Corrie) was offered THE once in a lifetime opportunity she has worked so hard for.

The plot thickens when we find out Corrie and Ford have actually already hooked up years before becoming the successful archeologists they are now. She can’t deny her attraction to ford or the awkwardness that comes with having to work in close proximity to him. Neither can Ford but he also has his eye on the prize, the hefty pay-out from their investor that will help with a personal situation he’s dealing with. One that is weighing heavy on his heart and mind and that is also leading to questionable/ethical decisions. What didn’t work for me? the ick feeling Ford’s actions left on me made it hard to ship this duo even though I really wanted to. Certain things he did made it hard to think he even deserved a woman like Corrie who already has the odds stacked against her in their shared field. I’m not saying he was totally irredeemable, I just wish the core of this story wasn’t based on a less than favorable move he made.

What I loved? National Treasure is one of my all time favorite adventure movies and this book does read like one with high stakes. I loved their archeological discoveries and theories of Chimali. Throwing in the artifact smuggler angle heightened the danger you’d typically get while watching Lara Croft/Indiana Jones in action. Lastly, I’d be quicker to call this friends to lovers than hate to love. I’m always going to prefer friends to lovers, the history between Corrie and Ford is a part of this story giving the reader a sense of picking up right where they left off. The steamy scenes were giving me LIFE! while also raising a brow at how well Ford’s more intimate chapters were written ☺️ I’m all for this becoming a romance/adventure series, the intrigue and spice alone would keep me flipping pages!

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Spoiler Free Review: Full Moon Over Freedom by Angelina M. Lopez

Title: Full Moon Over Freedom (Milagro Street #2)

Author: Angelina M. Lopez

Pub. Date: September 5th 2023

Genre: Romance/Latinx

Format: eARC

Publisher: Harlequin Feature

Pages: 400

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☆☆ARC PROVIDED BY PUBLISHER IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW☆☆

Full Moon Over Freedom is the second book in the Milagro Street series following a Mexican-American family trying to breathe life back into a Kansas city street, home to many hard working class immigrants. This time we’re following Gillian Armstead-Bancroft, one of the Torres sisters who is returning to Freedom Kansas with her two children and in the middle of an ugly divorce/custody battle. To friends and family, Gillian has always been a do-gooder who did everything “right” and more than ever, wants to be good at being bad. Running into her childhood bestfriend Nicky Mendoza poses an opportunity to let go and go with the flow. Nicky was the one she entrusted to help her lose her virginity the summer before leaving for college, he represents home and safety. For Nicky, the return of the girl he loves comes with a ton of mixed emotions including abandonment. Nevertheless, they throw caution to the wind and ignite what they’ve never been able to forget.

What I didn’t love? I struggled warming up to Gillian, but that may just be my preference for lead characters who go against the grain and are a bit more bold in life choices. Gillian is trying to find her footing after having her idea of success and happiness completely changed and her life turned upside down. We get a healthy dose both Gillian and Nicky independently however, their romance in present time felt a bit unbalanced. As in, Nicky was definitely pouring into Gillian’s cup but she was wrapped up in a lot of unresolved issues. The friends to lovers trope set the foundation for this connection but its also what carried this story arc.

What I loved? returning to Freedom Kansas, seeing familiar faces, and the progress being made to open business in this long forgotten street. There’s discussion of opportunities and business plans being drawn up to help women of color gain financial independence through ownership. We also see our MC’s dig through historical documents that paint a better picture of how women of color contributed to this street in decades past. One a more personal level, Gillian is navigating being a new single mom to her kids. One of which has autism; Gillian’s very real concerns and fears of being in a toxic co-parenting situation and how it affects her child. There are heavy themes explored such as drug addiction, emotional abuse, and death of a loved one. This series also has a touch of magical realism, we come across La Llorona who is a ghost from Mexican Folklore as well as a wolf entity that follow our main characters down their paths independently. I love when my romance books are meaty and complex like the Milagro Street books are, my interest in reading about the youngest Torres sister next is definitely piqued!

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Spoiler Free Review: Exes & O’s by Amy Lea

Title: Exes & O’s

Author: Amy Lea

Pub. Date: January 10th. 2023

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley Books

Pages: 361

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆

In this friends to lovers story, we follow Tara Chen a “stage-five clinger” who has had her heart broken by ten different men but it hasn’t soured her to romance. Our girl is in search of the right one and that means kissing a few frogs. Tara is a Pediatric nurse, social media book influencer, lover of the romance genre in search of her own happily ever after. The idea to revisit her past exes in hopes of finding a missed opportunity takes off after she shares it with her followers. She is locked in and committed to going down that list despite the awkward encounters she sees coming. We see her move into a new apartment and meet the new roomie Trevor who isn’t attached to anyone and isn’t really trying to get into anything serious. He finds Tara’s experiment to be not quite a great idea but this firefighter who has NO problem keeping it casual with the ladies, is also her wingman. He’s also the only one Tara doesn’t seem to scare away with her optimistic approach to love and dating…if there was a fast forward option, our girl would definitely hit it if it meant meeting and falling for the one. Along the way he starts to see how great Tara really is and sparks begin to fly…

Too many times I’ve picked up a rom-com that’s somehow missing the comedy but this one had the right recipe, the balance was just a bit off. The whole premise of going back and calling these guys she’s broken up with sounds pretty awkward but she takes up the task with genuine hopes that one of them was a missed opportunity. Although we did get to meet two of the guys, these scenes felt rushed. I feel it would’ve added just the right amount of humor to the story if we had more time going through her list. Also, her ex fiancé is first class trash and any time he was on the page I cringed so hard for Tara SMH!

I would’ve loved to have seen our male lead Trevor’s POV a bit more fleshed out. We spend a lot of time in Tara’s mind which made for an unbalanced attraction. While it’s true that Tara is very clingy which probably made her POV come through a bit stronger, I felt we only got to see Trevor’s feelings towards the very end. That being said, the friends to lovers trope is my favorite and reading a MC who is a member of her fictional book community was pretty dope. The opening scene alone with Tara riding the train while reading her romance novel and making eye contact with a cutie had me shaking my head with thoughts of BEEN THERE! Who can resist a steamy dust jacket?!? Haha! I will be continuing on with The Influencer books, Mel’s story arc “The Catch” is next and it’s already snagged a spot up on Goodreads!

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Spoiler Free Review: Two Wrongs Make A Right by Chloe Liese

Title: Two Wrongs Make A Right

Author: Chloe Liese

Pub. Date: November 22nd 2022

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley Books

Pages: 326

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆

*•.¸♡ “𝙸 𝚗𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚜𝚘 𝚞𝚗𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚎. 𝚃𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘 𝚍𝚒𝚏𝚏𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚊𝚝 𝚑𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚠𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐.” ♡¸.•*

I love a good opposites attract romance but up until now I haven’t read anything that really gets the magnetic pull and irresistibility you feel when you meet your polar opposite. Bea is an artist who creates sensual cards for a stationary shop, she’s Pansexual, a twin, prone to accidents, a junk food lover, and an astrology loving Cancer. Jamie is a pediatrician, cat lover, health conscious, and non-astrology loving Capricorn. They’ve had a few run-ins that didn’t end so well but their meddling friends seem to think they’re perfect for each other. Bea and Jamie zone in on their schemes to make them date & are peeved by the intrusion. They hatch a plan to fake-date that includes a big break-up in hopes that it will dissuade their friends from ever playing cupid again. The thing is, they do connect in all the ways that matter. Bea is on the spectrum and Jamie has severe anxiety, they pick up on each other’s wants and needs very quickly. There’s a magnetic attraction and a desire to protect each other and create a safe space where they can speak their thoughts. Their dates are fun and different, from Chess matches to Sip & Paints they begin to fall hard. Soon it’s made very clear to them both that they’re not just pretending to like one another, they’re actually enjoying their dates.

I’ve heard the name Chloe Liese mentioned on every bookish platform I’m in and it’s always been high praise for delivering romance with neurodivergent rep. Having loved Helen Hoang’s Kiss Quotient series, I was on the hunt for more romance books with this representation. I kid you not my fellow book lovers, it was 1am and I had startled everyone in my home with my laughter within the first chapter of reading this book. The laugh out loud scenes were sudden and unexpected and as a fellow Capricorn I’d say it was the dry humor Jamie dished out lol. Jamie and Bea could square off any day and I’d grab a front row seat! the snark was on point. These characters are well fleshed out, it honestly felt like we’re getting to know them as they’re digging deep. There were times I wondered to myself why things were handled a certain way but understood the reasons as Bea and Jamie started to let each other in.

I LOVE Jamie, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t find flaws that contradicted the picture I had of him for the majority of the story. Without spoiling anything, I started to not love some of Jamie’s reactions or lack there-of to how a major side character was being treated, this is why I docked it half a star. Why only half a star? well because it could be argued that Jamie didn’t know the extent of how terrible a certain character was acting. Jamie is honestly the sweetest most thoughtful male MC I’ve read, he tunes into Bea’s love language very quickly. Bea on the other hand I instantly fell in love with! she’s quirky and artistic but also fiercely protective of her healing journey. Our girl went through some things and she is not about being rushed into anything, I loved seeing this on the page! Bea keeps the cutest little hedgehog in her room that I dare you not to make heart eyes over. We’re here for non-traditional pets haha! there are also a handful of side characters that really bring the friend circle to life. I’m anticipating Juliet’s story arc, she is Bea’s twin but also came across as three-dimensional and had me invested in her side-line story. In the meantime, I think I’ll join the Chloe Liese lovers & pick up the Bergman Brothers series 😉

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Spoiler Free Review: A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

Title: A Very Merry Bromance

Author: Lyssa Kay Adams

Pub. Date: November 1st 2022

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley

Pages: 368

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆╮

The fifth installment in the Bromance Bookclub romance series gives us a pinch of The Grinch and a dash of the Ghosts of Christmas past. This time around big time country music star Colton Wheeler is going through the motions after a year of not hearing from Gretchen Wheeler, the woman who stole his heart and never looked back. Gretchen is an immigration lawyer with a grinchlike approach to Christmas, how can anyone celebrate and buy lavish gifts when there are families being torn apart. Her clients are marginalized people who are just trying to survive while putting food on the table. When her wealthy family comes calling for her to make an appearance at their estate, Gretchen begrudgingly gives in and goes to see why they’re looking for her. A deal is presented to her, get Colton Wheeler to be the new face of their family owned/renowned whiskey and she’ll be given a seat on their charity board. An opportunity to give back to the community she works in and with is something she can’t turn down even if it means swallowing her pride to talk to Colton. Colton agrees only on the condition that she go on three dates with him leading up to Christmas, the holiday she is accustomed to work on. This Grumpy/Sunshine Christmas romance had a little of everything including the found family vibes we’ve all come to look from these books.

What I loved? Colton’s optimism and holiday spirit, found family vibes, seeing the club members and their wives, the deep dive into Gretchen’s childhood/trauma and finally the emphasis on self worth/self care. These books gift us with fictional men who actually care about working through toxic masculinity and maintaining healthy relationships with the women they are dating. This is the fifth book in the Bromance Bookclub series so we’ve seen the guys meet and fall in love with women from all walks of life. Some are repairing/salvaging marriages they want to stay in and none of them are quick to throw in the towel. I love when character’s are well fleshed out and their careers/hobbies are further explored. Colton’s music career is on the line when he has a bit of writers block and isn’t able to compose music to the standard that made him a big country star. Gretchen could’ve taken the easy route and stepped into a role in the family business, instead we see an immigration lawyer who is very empathetic and actively looking for ways to make a difference in marginalized communities. I follow Lyssa Kay Adams on Goodreads and see that the next release will be a Historical Romance companion to the Bromance Bookclub slated for Summer 2023, something to look forward to!

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Spoiler Free Review: On The Hustle by Adriana Herrera

Title: On The Hustle

Author: Adriana Herrera

Pub. Date: October 11th 2022

Genre: Contemporary Romance/Latinx

Format: eARC

Publisher: Carina Press

Pages: 352

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆╮

𝗢𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗛𝗨𝗦𝗧𝗟𝗘 is the second book in the Dating In Dallas series by Latinx author Adriana Herrera and hands down my FAVORITE of Herrera’s books! Alba Duarte is a Dominican bisexual woman living in NYC, hard working and owner of a start-up she is passionate about. The only thing getting in her way is the 9 to 5 job she needs to walk away from, especially because working for the Olympian swimmer Theo Ganas is working her last nerve. The Dominican Greek adonis is particular about his coffee and his assistant. Alba doesn’t quite understand why she hasn’t walked away from her position, it’s not like Theo even acknowledges her existence other than when she’s late. On the side she has turned her love of books & fandoms into a business where she designs bedrooms inspired by them. When a visit to her BFF in Dallas Texas presents her with an opportunity to give her business some visibility & recognition, Alba knows it’s time to make some tough decisions. Life in NYC is tied to her family, the ones who depend on her almost like a crutch. Stepping out on her own could potentially lead to better helping them and a fresh new start that’ll put some much needed space between them. When a two week notice turns into an abrupt goodbye, a very determined Theo Ganas hops on a plane to Dallas to find Alba with an offer of his own.

When I say the HEAT was at an ALL time high! it’s because it consumed me! This book had it all and then some. The Dallas Crew who we met in Here To Stay is back and they’re dying for Alba to stay in Dallas, I LOVE this circle of friends and how supportive they are with one another. I really enjoyed hearing about their individual careers and how they give back to other communities in need. Theo acknowledging that his life is more than just gaining his father’s approval and then looking for ways to find his soul purpose was cool to see. Just like Alba not settling or watering down her vision/dream just for a dollar made me love her even more. Now as for the romance itself? Herrera gives us a grumpy/sunshine, forced proximity, workplace romance that is off the charts…Theo Ganas brought the heat! Alba didn’t stay behind making sure Theo knew that he was on her time. Both characters are well fleshed out making this romance easy to get behind and cheer on. One recurring thought I had all throughout was that this man sure does know how to love up on his woman! Adriana Hererra is an author to look out for if you’re looking for quality romance with queer representation. It’s easy for a New Yorker such as myself to look at Alba and see themselves, chances are if you’re a career woman living in any city…you are tired and a massage is in order! 😉

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Spoiler Free Review: Love On The Brain by Ali Hazelwood

Title: Love On The Brain

Author: Ali Hazelwood

Pub. Date: August 23rd 2022

Genre: Contemporary Romance/Rom-COM

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group

Pages: 368

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆╮

*•.¸♡ 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐞, 𝐁𝐞𝐞. 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬 – 𝐋𝐞𝐯𝐢 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐝 ♡¸.•*

Bee Königswasser has been given the opportunity to work as the lead on a neuroengineering project with NASA to create a helmet for astronauts that would improve their focus. She’s excited up until she finds out Levi aka the guy who she believes hates her, will be the co-lead engineer on the project. She feels he made his feelings toward her known during grad school and the last thing she’d fathom is having to work in close proximity with someone who loathes her. She asks herself what would her idol the French Physicist Marie Curie do if she were in her shoes? readily acknowledging that Marie would accept this opportunity no questions asked, Bee decides to accept. Soon after she introduces herself to the team (all dude bros), all sorts of hijinks occur to prevent Bee from actually doing her job. We see Levi begin to back her up as she’s presenting her ideas/suggestions and quickly turns into more of an ally than enemy. Bee is very aware of his presence and stolen glances so much so that she starts to enjoy their collaboration. All the while reminding herself that Levi still fundamentally hates her.

I’ll preface this part of my review by mentioning that I’ve seen many reviews since I finished my read and although I agree that there’s a specific formula to all of these “Steminist” books, I enjoyed this more than The Love Hypothesis. The biggest standout difference for me is that both leads/romantic love interests are thoroughly fleshed out making it easy to connect and root for this ship. I LOVED the insider look we get to the actual project and seeing Bee leave a lot of dude bros in awe as she strutted her knowledge in her area of expertise. I also loved seeing Levi go from silent bystander to someone in Bee’s corner who can’t stand when his male colleagues make it difficult for her to work. I loved the fact that Bee hates that it takes Levi backing her in order for the team to give her the time of day. She draws parallels between her current situation and that of Marie Curie who had to fight for an ounce of respect/recognition as a female Physicist during the early 1900’s. It’s not often that I end up LOVING the male lead but Levi has my whole heart simply because he’s a feminist that genuinely wants to see change in their field of work. If you can get past the many mentions of Levi’s large manly frame 😂 and Bee being overly oblivious, there’s a lot to love:

🧪Empowered women in STEM
🧪Tropes: Hate to love (kinda)/Close proximity
🧪Twitter threads/wars for entertainment
🧪feisty invisible 🐈
🧪Vegan love
🧪🧠 talk as they race to perfect a helmet for NASA
🧪Male lead is a feminist
🧪The humor was 👌🏽if it can get me to laugh out loud, then and only then it gets placed on my rom-COM faves shelf 😉

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Spoiler Free review: Love In The Time Of Serial Killers by Alicia Thomspon

Title: Love In The Time Of Serial Killers

Author: Alicia Thompson

Pub. Date: August 16th 2022

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group

Pages: 336

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆╮

Characters: 7/10 Atmosphere: 0/10 Writing Style: 7/10 Plot: 5/10 Intrigue: 5/10 Logic/Relationships: 7/10 Enjoyment: 7/10

Rating: 38/5.4 = ☆☆ 3 Stars☆☆╮

Rating system created by The Book Roast

Fellow Cappies Rejoice we’ve got ourselves our very own Capricorn female MC and I dare you not to draw parallels as you take a trip inside the mind of Pheobe Walsh. Obsessed with True Crime and working on her dissertation analyzing the genre leaves Pheebs with very little time to even think of dating. Her father has recently passed away and she is now back in Florida trying to get her childhood home in order to sell. Having had a tough relationship with her dad that resulted in leaving with her mom after they divorced, she also has her brother Jeremy to reconnect with. The brother who stayed with their curmudgeon dad and is very sweet natured is also worried his sister’s obsession with true crime has reached new levels. Pheeb’s swears the hot and mysterious neighbor Sam MUST be a serial killer and she’s gone as far as logging in his coming & goings. There’s only one problem with this theory & that’s that with every interaction they have she has to admit Sam is just a great guy but this doesn’t mean she’s going to make it easy for him.

Our main character Pheobe puts the grump in grumpy sunshine and her dark sense of humor isn’t for everyone. Some readers may even find her to be unlikeable because we get a heavy dose of her paranoia with many mentions pop culture references of serial killers. For other readers who may listen/read true crime, the research in the genre may actually be a bonus and the dissertation process to have been detailed nicely. The romance takes off a bit later in the story with the steamy scenes falling short and I know that’s probably going to hurt the overall ratings for this book. I feel this one is going to land with those who don’t mind their female protagonist to be a bit unlikeable, perhaps even pessimistic and cynical. Sam the love interest is hard not to love, he’s a music teacher who can’t help but want to assist Pheobe with moving furniture or any project really as long as he’s getting to spend time with her. I almost wish this had been dual POV to give us a break from Pheeb’s thought process while also giving us a chance to get to know Sam. Taking all of this into account… this is my personal opinion but I feel male grumpy protagonists are ALWAYS preferred over a female grump 😂 yet they DO exist and deserve to be loved just as much! haha! To be honest I loved so many of the other themes in this book like the sibling dynamics, second chance friendships and unresolved grief of a parent being addressed. I feel these did compensate for some of the other things that needed more developing.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:

💓Plus size representation
🕵🏻True Crime genre explored
😒Grumpy/Sunshine trope🤗
🐈‍⬛Stray cat claiming squatters rights
👫Sibling relationship explored
👭🏻Second chance friendships
📚The Library as a secondary setting

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Spoiler Free Review: A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adriana Herrera

Title: A Caribbean Heiress in Paris (Las Léonas #1)

Author:Adriana Herrera

Pub. Date: May 31st 2022

Genre: Historical Romance/Latinx

Format: eARC

Publisher: HQN

Pages: 368

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☆☆ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review☆☆╮

Characters: 10/10 Atmosphere: 7/10 Writing Style: 10/10 Plot: 10/10 Intrigue: 7/10 Logic/Relationships: 10/10 Enjoyment: 10/10

Rating: 64/9.1 = ☆☆ 5 Stars☆☆╮

Rating system created by The Book Roast

☆☆ 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐋𝐮𝐳 𝐀𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐚 𝐇𝐞𝐢𝐭𝐡-𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐳𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝐟𝐞𝐰 𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬. 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭, 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥. 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝, 𝐚 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐧’𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐝, 𝐚 𝐟 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐟𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐫𝐮𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲. ☆☆╮

A Caribbean Heiress in Paris is Historical Romance with flavor, heart and heat! Our Dominican Scottish MC is traveling to The Exposition Universelle from Santo Domingo with three hundred casks of her family made rum Caña Brava. Unfortunately she has also lost her father and their family owned Rum business is not quite fully under her control. The only way to regain it is by marrying and having her husband then release ownership of it to her. Evan Sinclair is in a similar boat, only he has a toxic father in control of the inheritance his mother has left him as a future wedding gift. Luz is business savvy, knows what she wants and speaks her truths. She can spot a business opportunity like the best of them, and a marriage of convenience with a hot Scott? Why not?

Luz Alana has her work cut out for her, she’s now her little sister’s care taker as well as the oldest living heir to the family owned buisness in a misogynistic world. She’s looking to continue growing her brand but those who are in the business of selling spirits (white privileged men) aren’t inclined to make it easier for her. We see Luz challenge micro-agressions with wit and a spitfire personality. We see her love interest Evan attempt to handle any who step out of line but it’s not really necessary, Luz can hold her own and makes sure Evan knows it. Still, it is nice knowing he is willing to go to bat for her if need be.

This is only the second Historical Romance I’ve picked up, the first being Sarah Maclean’s Bombshell which also featured a feminist heroine who is fiercely independent. I’m convinced now that I’ve read Luz Alana’s story arc that so long as the heroine is a no-nonsense call it like she sees it type, I will love the story! Luz addresses the fact that the generational wealth from which Evan will benefit comes from the slave trade. Evan in turn quickly acknowledges that to be a disgraceful truth.

“You are correct, yours is a legacy to be proud of. Mine, on the other hand, only warrants being razed to the ground.”

What I loved most is the way Luz and Evan’s relationship developed. Sure he was smitten from the moment he laid eyes on her but first and foremost he gave her props and admired the business woman in her. They also had grade A communication and thankfully the miscommunication trope does not rear it’s ugly head. There are some things that aren’t immediately disclosed since there is a revenge subplot but it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be explained and worked through. I absolutely LOVED this book and cannot wait to read stories from Luz’s girlfriends aka The Leonas who both piqued my curiosity.

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Spoiler Free Review: Set On You by Amy Lea

Title: Set On You

Author: Amy Lea

Pub. Date: May 10th 2022

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Format: eARC

Publisher: Berkley Books

Pages: 384 pages

GOODREADS | BARNES & NOBLE | AMAZON | LIBROFM

ARC provided by Publisher in exchange for an honest review

Fitstagrammer Crystal Chen has built her platform by breaking gym stereotypes and throwing positivity at the haters who can’t help but troll her posts. She’s just experienced a break-up that’s left her feeling like setting some boundaries. Tired of having surface level flings and craving a deeper connection, Crystal is on high alert for any guy with red flags. To top it off she finds herself in squat wars with the new guy at the gym who she’s dubbed The Squat Rack Thief. This guy doesn’t follow any of the gyms unspoken rules leaving Crystal both appalled and determined to beat him to the squat rack each night. Soon a tit-for-tat type relationship develops and with it, a whole dose of sexual chemistry.

Hopefully Dear Reader, you haven’t read the Goodreads synopsis for this book since I feel it gives away a bit too much and I’m glad I went in with very minimal info. For starters, we don’t get Squat Rack Thief’s name right away and I felt this added a fun mystery and led to a surprising reveal. These characters face a couple of challenges before their romance takes off but nothing they couldn’t get through, it was more of a battle of wills playing out. Crystal isn’t trying to become anyone’s rebound (again) and she’s also fiercely and proudly protective of her followers. She dedicates her time to working privately with clients and posting motivational videos/captions that we get to read in the book. We also get to see both the positive & negative comments she gets daily and how she handles having a large platform as a plus size Chinese American Fitstagrammer. Squat Rack Thief is described as looking like Chris Evans and having killer abs but he also deals with some stereotypes and Crystal brings those to the surface.

CW (some of which are mentioned in the author’s note): Cheating, Cancer, death of a loved one mentioned, cyberbullying, fatphobia, references to racism, fitness/diet culture

At its core this book carries such a strong message on what exactly “body positivity” really is on an individual basis and what confidence and self-worth really looks like on the daily. Any book that can make me self reflect is one I’ll recommend and this is one I feel did that and more. Personally, my fitness journey like crystals stemmed from wanting to find my way back to a more confident ME. It’s not tied to a number on the scale but rather a feeling of happiness and comfort in my own skin. There’s also the fact that Crystal doesn’t have a traditional job or career, she has built a strong following and with it acquired some endorsements. Her loving traditional self-made father struggles with her choices and that too was interesting to see play out. All in all, we have a independent woman who has worked hard to achieve success, confidence and up her self worth but that doesn’t mean every day is a good day.

“I don’t think confidence and self-worth is something you magically attain. And you don’t simply hold onto it forever like a tangible object. It’s fluid. You can be confident in every aspect except one. Or something could happen and all your confidence can be shattered in an instant.”

The journey Crystal is on is hella relatable down to setting healthy boundaries with the male love interest. Yes there were moments where they bent the rules & gave into their cravings but there was also a clear line of communication. I really would’ve loved for this to have been multiple POV cause I was dying to know what Squat Rack Thief was thinking. Especially during the last 15% where that communication they maintained all throughout was put on pause. Otherwise this was a laugh-out-loud funny, sexy, empowering, and at times five chili peppers steamy read. There’s a strong cast of supporting characters made up of family members and friends, each of them well fleshed out with tons of personality. Something to look forward to? possibly? well, Crystal’s sister is introduced as a Bookstagrammer/Nurse and I’m more than READY for her story! One can hope amiright?!? Set on You by Amy Lea hits shelves May 10th!